Words to Write by
Mapping the Hero’s Journey
We’ve officially started our new book, Christopher Vogler’s The Writer’s Journey. And boy is there a lot in the first two chapters! First (or first after Kim’s rant) is an...
The Writer’s Journey. Let’s Do This.
We’re on the last chapter of Judith Barrington’s book, Writing the Memoir, “Practical Advice on Critique Groups,” plus the dos and don’ts of giving and getting feedback. It’s practical...
Remembering the Day When…
Your memoir is about you (obviously) but it’s not just about you. In this episode we cover Judith Barrington’s chapter on how (and why) to bring events from the...
Workshop: Naming Names in your Memoir
Writing Workshop with Kim & ReneeWriting th Memoir Subscribe to our Newsletter The Writing Workshop Exercise Map your Novel according to Vogler’s The Hero Journey. For this week’s workshop...
Let’s Not Get Sued (for Writing a Memoir)
Judith Barrington’s Writing the MemoirChapter 8, 9, & Appendix Subscribe to our Newsletter Writing (and publishing) a memoir can be nerve wracking. What if the people you’re writing about...
The Secret to Getting Your Short Stories Publish
Our Interview with Erik Harper Klass In this stand alone episode, we talk with Erik Klass, the entrepreneurial editor behind the submission service Submitit about what literary journals are...
Workshop: Analyzing How Time Works in Memoir
Writing Workshop with Kim & ReneefromWriting the Memoir Subscribe to our Newsletter The Writing Workshop Exercise Find two or three short memoirs (short-story length as opposed to book length)...
Time Travel in Memoir
Memoirs are rarely straight chronological narratives, what with the musing we talked about last episode, and they almost always jump forwards and backwards in time. We discuss Judith Barrington...
Musing: Memoir’s Secret Ingredient
We’ve gotten to the part of Judith Barrington’s Writing the Memoir where she covers the actual writing of in a memoir, the words on the page. In addition...
You CAN handle the truth (in your memoir)
Readers seek out memoirs because they want true stories. But the truth, according to Judith Barrington in her book Writing the Memoir, is more than using Google to fact...
Finding Your Memoir’s Form
Chronological, essays, skipping through time, interspersed non-fiction — there are so many forms that memoir can take. Judith Barrington covers several in her book, Writing the Memoir, and in...
Making Your Memoir Matter
Baring one's soul in a memoir is hard work. Convincing others to care is one thing, but to engage in your life story? That's a whole other beast. In...
Truth VS Narrative in Memoir
We’re starting a NEW BOOK - Judith Barrington’s Writing the Memoir. And what better place to start than by discussing what a memoir is, what memoir isn’t, and just...
Bye Bye Birdy
How do you tackle one of the most famous writing craft books, you take it “Bird by Bird.” That’s what we’ve done with Anne Lamott’s book over the past...
Why Do You Write?
Well, why do you? The answer for most authors is to get published. But is that the only reason, or even the best reason? As we near the...
What To Do When You Have Writer’s Block
Anne Lamott (in her Bird by Bird book) says the dreaded writer’s block isn’t about being blocked, it’s about being empty. In today’s podcast we discuss Lamott’s approach to...
Writing Groups: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Behind most successful authors there is a writing group (at least according to their novel's acknowledgment section). But how does one find a writing group, and how do you...
Writing Advice from the 90s
Some advice is timeless, some is not. In this episode, we evaluate writing techniques from Anne Lamott's book Bird by Bird and see if they still have value...
Shut (those voices in your head) Up & Write
Sometimes just showing up isn’t enough. You’ve set time aside for writing and instead of your story unfurling on the page (or screen) other things come out. In this...
Beyond Butt In Chair
We’re onto the second section in Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird — The Writing Frame Of Mind — and it’s getting a bit nebulous folks. In “Looking Around,” Lamont...
What We're Reading
Zen and the Art of Writing
Bradbury…(yes, that Bradbury!) wrote a writing craft book. Together, we’ll test his promise to “release the creative genius within you.” Join us as we pick apart the process (and–dare we say– hubris) of this lovable sci-fi author as he tells us what to do, but not always how to do it. Stay tuned!
Bird by Bird
We know you own it. But have you read it? Like really, really read it? It’s time to crack that spine and delve into the depths of your perfectionism, mental hang ups, and neuroses and get that butt in the chair. At least, a writer can dream, can’t she?
The Writer's Journey
Does a plot formula a good novel make? Let’s find out! You know it by many names: The Hero’s Journey; The Monomyth theory; Jungian Archetypes, etc. But Vogler deliver on his promise? By the end of this book, will you, too, be able to write a plot and craft well rounded characters everyone will love? Only one way to find out (sans reading). Good thing you have us. Right, Dear Listener?
Authors & AI
Oh Snap, we’re tackling the beast that is AI HEAD ON! No covering your eyes! No head in the sand! We’re going to look this beast in the eye and tell it who’s boss. . .unless we’re not the boss. Wait? Whose in charge here?
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Bye Bye Birdy